Gas-pressure regulator.



G. M. S. TAIT. GAS PRESSURE REGULATOR. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 11. 1910.

Patented May 2,1911.

' z SHEETS-SHEET 1,

ATTORNEY THE NORRIS PEYERS cm, WASHINGTON, n. 13.

GODFREY M. S. TAIT, OF MONTCLAIR,

COMPANY, OF NEW NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO TAIT PRODUCER YORK, N. Y., A.CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

GAS-PRESSURE REGULATOR.

991,1SG. Specification of Letters .Eatent.

Application filed January 11, 1910.

Patented May 2, 1911.

Serial No. 537,385.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GODFREY M. S. TAIT, a subject of the King ofEngland, and a resident of Montclair, in the county of Essex and Stateof New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inGas-Pressure Regulators, of which the following is a full, clear, andexact specification, such as will enable others skilled in the art towhich it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to apparatus for forcing gas, air, or the like,through pipes or mains, and is particularly intended for handling airand gas in large volumes as the delivery of gas from producers to a gasengine.

My invention comprises ing and maintaining on the delivery side of theapparatus a practically constant pressure regardless of the amount ofair or gas pumped and regardless of the pressure, if any, at which it issupplied to the apparatus.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple and compact air or gasforcing apparatus by which a substantially constant pressure ismaintained at the delivery end of the apparatus regardless of variationsin the pressure at which such air or gas may be supplied to theapparatus, and regardless of the amount of air or gas pumped.

My invention involves other features of importance and all features ofthe same will be fully set forth hereinafter and particularly pointedout in the claims.

I will now proceed to describe, as an example, the preferred form of myinvention making reference to the accompanying drawings and to thereference characters marked thereon.

In said drawings ;--Figure lshows a top view of the apparatus; Fig. 2 aside view thereof with a portion of the front of the lower part of theapparatus broken away; Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the apparatus withthe major portion of the end plate of the lower portion of the apparatusbroken away; and Fig. 1 shows a detail elevation and partial section ofan alternative form of pressure-balancing conduit.

According to my invention I provide a suitable blower or equivalentair-forcing device; and in order to insure a uniform pressure at thedelivery of this air-forcing device I provide a bypass which opens uponexceeding the intended pressure and relieves the same, allowing theexcess to pass back through the said air forcing device. Preferably thisby-pass means consists of a liquidcontaining chamber into which the airor gas to be handled is passed before passing to the inl-t of theair-forcing device; and in connection with this liquid-containingchamber one or more conduits extending from the delivery conduit of theair-forcing de vice into the liquid in said chamber and immersed thereinto a depth corresponding to the pressure which the apparatus is tomaintain. In case the apparatus shall tend to produce a pressure at thedelivery in excess tained, a portion of the air or gas handled willbreak the water seal formed by the immersion of the conduit mentioned inthe liquid, and so will by-pass to the inlet of the forcing apparatus,thus relieving excess pressure in the delivery conduit thereof.

In the drawings, 1 designates a driving motor, which may be considered ageneric illustration of driving means for the apparatus, and 2designates an air-forcing device, which may be considered as a genericillustration of means for maintaining flow of air or gas or the like,the particular forcing means shown being a positive blower of well knowntype, arranged to be driven by motor 1.

3 designates the final discharge conduit and 4 the inlet conduitthereof.

15 designates a liquid containing chamber, located, in the constructionshown, in the base of the apparatus, the inlet conduit 4. connectingwith the upper portion of this chamber 15 above the normal level ofliquid therein. In this chamber 15 is a secondary chamber 7, the bottomof which is above the normal level of the liquid in chamber 15; andpipes or conduits S extend downward from the bottom of chamber 7 intothe liquid in chamber 15. The outlet 3 passes from this secondarychamber 7.

The blower 2 has a supply conduit 5 connecting with the portion ofchamber 15 which is above the normal level of the liquid therein, andsaid blower has also a discharge conduit 6 connected with the secondarychamber 7.

9 designates a gate valve arranged above the normal level of the liquidin chamber 15, and arranged to establish communicameans for creatof thepredetermined pressure to be main res tion between chambers 7 and 15,when said valve is opened.

12 indicates a gage glass or water column by which the height of theliquid in chamber 15 is indicated visually.

l3 and 1% designate respectively a liquid supply pipe and a drain pipe.

11 designates the liquid within chamber 15.

10 designates a series of tubes, similar to tubes 8, and likewiseextending from chamher 7 down into the liquid 11, but extending intosaid liquid to a depth greater than do the pipes 8.

The operation of this apparatus is as follows: The chamber 15 containingliquid to about the level indicated in the drawings, and the blower 2being in operation, so long as said blower maintains in chamber 7 apressure not in excess of the pressure corresponding to the depth towhich the tubes 8 are immersed in the liquid in chamber 15, the blowerwill operate in the ordinary man ner, the air or the other gas handled,entering at 4:, into the upper portion of chamber 15, and thence passingthrough conduit 5 into the blower and thence through conduit 6 intochamber 7, and thence out through discharge conduit 3. If for any reasonthe pressure so produced in chamber 7 should begin to exceed thepressure due to the depth of immersion of pipes 8 in theliquid, theliquid in said pipes 8 will be blown out and a portion of the air or gasin chamber 7 will pass down through these pipes into the liquid andthence upward and again entering conduits 5 and passing through theblower. In this way it will be seen that excessive pressure in chamber 7and in main discharge conduit 3 is avoided through by-passing of aportion of the air or gas pump, through the pipes 8 and the liquid. Theproportion of air or gas so bypassing will be in practically uniform andin exact proportion to the excess pressure which the blower wouldotherwise produce. The height of the water in the chamber 15 may beregulated easily, thus regulating the pressure in chamber 7 and main 3.If for any reason the pressure in chamber 7 should ecome greater thancan be relieved through pipes 8, a very slight further rise in pressurein chamber 7 will cause the pressure to be relieved through the deeperpipes 10 which will operate in the same manner as pipe 8.

It will be seen that with this apparatus a practically uniform pressurewill be maintained, regardless of the pressure at which the air or othergas is supplied to the apparatus through conduit 4; for the pressure atwhich air or gas is determined by the specific gravity of the liquid inchamber 15 and the depth of immersion therein of pipes 8 and 10. Inordinary practice the pipes 8 will be of such capacity that they inthemselves can pass the entire excess of air or gas which must beby-passed, during normal operation, to maintain a uniform pressure inoutlet conduit 3, and therefore the pressure in that conduit will remainconstant. The object of the employment of the deeper pipe 10, is toprovide for emergency or un usual conditions, when it may happen thatthere will be a flow of air or gas through the apparatus in excess ofthat which can be controlled pipes 8.

The gate valve 9 is provided so that the apparatus may not prevent theflow of gas or air in case of possible cessation of operation of motor 1or blower 2. In such case, the valve 9, if open, permits the air or gashandled to pass directly from conduit at to conduit 3, without firstpassing through the blower.

As an alternative to the arrangement of pipes 8 and 10, immersed todifferent depth, shown in Figs. 2 and 3, I may employ one or morepressure balancing pipes 16, such as shown in Fig. 4, notched at thebottom, so that the liquid in chambers 5 will be forced down below thetops of these notches, in case pressure in the chamber 7, to a depthproportional to that required to permit bypassing of the air or gasthrough such conduit to such extent as is required to maintain constantpressure in the main discharge conduit 3.

The device through the agency of the herein described is of particularvalue in connection with gas power plants, for delivering gas from theproducer or other source of gas supply to the engine of such a plant.hen so used, the variation of pressure in the delivery conduits 3 and 6will ordinarily be due to varying demands of the engine for gas, and incase the load 011 the engine is decreased suddenly, so that thecustomary governor controlled throttle valve 0' the engine is closedmore or less, the resulting slight excess in pressure in conduits 3 and6 will be relieved through the water-sealed conduit 8, and possiblythrough water-sealed conduit 10 as well, so that the pressure at whichthe gas is supplied to the engine will remain nearly constant.

Having thus described my invention what claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. The combination of means for enforcing the flow of gas, a by-passaround the same, and a liquid chamber for sealing such lay-pass, openingautomatically upon the development of a predetermined pressure at theoutlet side of such means for enforcing the flow of gas.

2. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressure producing means, aliquid containing chamber normally only partly filled with liquid andfrom the upper portion of which the pressure producing ineans draws itssupply, and a pressure-balancing conduit extending from the discharge ofsaid pres sure-producing means and terminating below the level of saidliquid at a depth proportionate to the pressure to be maintained, andopen at said terminal, whereby in case of creation of excess pressuresuch excess will be relieved through the escape of a portion of the airor gas through the liquid seal formed beyond the liquid surrounding thepressure-balancing conduit.

3. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressure producing means, anda liquid sealed by-pass, one portion of which communicates with thedischarge of said pressure producing means, and another portion of whichcommunicates through the liquid sealing it with the inlet of saidpressure producing means.

4. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressure producing means, aliquid containing chamber to the upper portion of which the inlet ofsaid pressure producing means is connected, a secondary chamberconnect-ed to the discharge of said pressure producing means, and apressure-balancing conduit extending from said secondary chamber intothe liquid in said liquid containing chamber, and normally sealed at itsfree end by the liquid in said chamber, but otherwise open.

Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressure producing means, aliquid-containing chamber to the upper portion of which the inlet ofsaid pressure producing means is connected, a secondary chamber withinsuch liquid containing chamber and located above the normal level of theliquid therein, and connected to the discharge of said pressureproducing means, and a pressure-balancing conduit extending from saidsecondary chamber downward into the liquid in said liquid containingchamber and normally sealed at the lower end by the liquid in suchchamber, but otherwise open.

6. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising an air or gas impeller, ahollow base upon which said impeller is mounted, comprising a liquidcontaining chamber and a secondary chamber, the former chamberconnectedto the inlet of the impeller and the latter chamber connectedto the discharge of the impeller, and a pressure-balancing conduitextending from said secondary chamber into the liquid in said otherchamber and normally sealed at its free end by the liquid in such otherchamber, but otherwise open.

l l l 7. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressure producingmeans, and a plurality of liquid-sealed by-passes, communieating withthe discharge of the said pressure producing means, and communicatingthrough the liquid sealing them with the inlet of said pressureproducing means, said by-passes terminating at different depths respectively in the sealing liquid.

8. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressure producing means, aliquid containing chamber to the upper portion of which the inlet ofsaid pressure producing means is connected, a secondary chamberconnected to the discharge of the said pressure producing means, and aplurality of pressurebalancing conduits extending from said secondarychamber and terminating within the liquid in said liquid-containingchamber to different depths respectively, and normally sealed at theirlower ends by the liquid in said chamber, but otherwise open.

9. Air or gas forcing apparatus, comprising pressure-producing means, aliquidsealed by-pass, the upper portion of which communicates witl thedischarge of said pressure-producing means, and the lower portion ofwhich communicates through the liquid sealing it, with the inlet of saidpressure producing means, and another by-pass directly connecting theinlet and discharge sides of said pressure producing means and forming abypass around said pressure-producing means, and means for normallyclosing said latter by-pass.

10. Air or gas forcing apparatus comprising pressureproducing means, aliquid con taining chamber to the upper portion of which the inlet ofsaid pressure producing means is connected, a secondary chamberconnected to the discharge of said pressure producing means, and apressure-balancing conduit extending from said secondary chamberdownward into the liquid in said liquid containing chamber, and normallysealed at its lower end by the liquid in said chamber, but otherwiseopen, and a valve between said liquid containing chamber and secondarychamber which valve, when open, forms direct passage through theapparatus.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

GODFREY M. S. TAIT. Witnesses:

B. BIGGE, G. U. UNA.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

